Summarized by Kent Larsen

KSL Nixes New Animated Comedy
Washington Post pgC07 7Mar00 D3
By Lisa de Moraes

SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH -- KSL-TV in Salt Lake and KPVI in Pocatello, Idaho will not carry NBC's new animated comedy "God, the Devil, and Bob" because of their objections to the show's taste. The show is about a 32-year-old Detroit auto worker picked by the Devil in a bet with God over whether mankind is worth saving. KSL is owned by Deseret Management, the for-profit arm of the LDS Church.

KSL Vice President Al Henderson issued a statement saying that the station's "management group looked at an advance copy of the show and decided it does not meet our standards of taste or quality during family viewing times." KSL has refused to carry other NBC shows in the past, including "Saturday Night Live" and the daytime soap "Sunset Beach." It has delayed other shows out of prime time, such as "Law and Order Special Victims Unit," which started airing last fall.

But the Washington Post's de Moraes questions KSL's policy, suggesting that its airing of the comedies "Veronica's Closet," "Suddenly Susan" and "Friends" in prime time is inconsistent with this decision. NBC has already found a replacement in the Salt Lake City market, which as the 36th largest market in the United States, is important to the network. It isn't having as much success in Pocatello, which is the 160th TV market nationally, a much lower priority.